A Basic Overview of Microsoft SharePoint Designer 2013

SharePoint Designer 2013 is a tool to develop SharePoint applications. Advanced users can develop no code solutions that encompass a variety of common scenarios from collaborative sites to web publishing to Line of business data integration, business intelligence solution, and human workflows leveraging the business blocks that are present in SharePoint in an easy to use environment. In addition to this, developers can use SharePoint Designer 2013 to get a quick start on SharePoint development projects.

SharePoint 2016 does not come with any updated Designer versions. We have to use the SharePoint 2013 with SharePoint 2016. SharePoint designer does not come pre-installed with SharePoint. It is a part of the Microsoft Office suite. The users can compose no-code solutions for SharePoint that encompass a variety of common scenarios including the line of Business data integration, business intelligence solution and workflows using SharePoint designer.

What are some key features within SharePoint Designer?

SharePoint Designer provides many features that can be used to create business solutions for creating workflows and subsites, publishing websites, branding and create and connect with External data sources using SharePoint designer. Below are some of the features that can be used with SharePoint 2016.

Site information– SharePoint Designer provides site general information like SharePoint version, Total storage used, % of available stores used, the quota for the site etc.

Branding– Using SharePoint Designer you can customize the branding for your site and publish it.

Workflow- you can create a workflow for a list or library using SharePoint designer.

View and Edit list- SharePoint designer tool allows you to view and edit the contents of the list. Also, you can create an External content type for your list using SharePoint designer.

Create views and forms– you can create views for your lists and manage them. Also, create customized forms using SharePoint designer for your business applications

Create and manage internal and external data Source– Using Sharepoint Designer, you can create and manage multiple sources.

A Basic Overview of Microsoft SharePoint Designer 2013

SharePoint designer allows you to manage sites at Wen application level and site collection level and you need to be a member of any of the following groups to use SharePoint Designer and edit the SharePoint site contents:

• Site collection administrators
• Designers
• Owners

In SharePoint 2016, you can enable/ disable SharePoint designer at the Web Application level by configuring settings using SharePoint central administrator website depicted below in the screenshot.

Site collection administrator

The site collection administrator has access to all contents within a site collection whether they are explicitly given access by being part of one of the groups outlined above or not. This also applies to using SharePoint Designer.

Designer

The built-in permission level in SharePoint gives you the ability to allow certain users to do more things with a site, but without giving them complete control of it. From a SharePoint designer point of view, it also allows to open the sites and manage them.

Owner

Like someone with a Design level of permission, a member of the site owners group will be able to use SharePoint designer, although there will be a few extra things they can do with the out of the box full control permission level. They can manage within the browser from these same things.

So what are the other options for securing SharePoint Designer?

It is important to note that beyond thinking carefully about who would be part of which group in SharePoint, you can still choose what options those users will have. The options are:

SharePoint Designer is a tool that can provide the bridge for users to solve everyday problems, enhance, and improve the way people work. Educate your design team with the more granular options available to control access to SharePoint designer. Give the power users the freedom to access SharePoint Designerand then you can truly wonder seeing the great solutions they come up with.